Say What You Mean

My Dad sent this to me a while ago and it's true. All of it.
  
I have to remind myself of these above nuances in work situations but I have gotten used to it by now. Luckily, most of my clients are international and from all over the place so they tend to say what them mean!  Hopefully I haven't offended anyone by saying what I mean in an obvious manner, instead of the unobvious, roundabout, easily miscontrued way that is customary.

I learned quickly if someone says to you... "I would prefer it if..." it means "Do it or else."  If you offer something to someone and they say "Oh I don't mind" it means "I'd love some but I don't want to be a bother so I'm going to act like I don't want any but yes, I do."

After sending this grid to some Brits they refuted some of them but I don't believe it. I think they just know their own secret unspoken language that they've been brought up with that the rest of us are meant to uncode!

The Great Pronunciation Battle

We all know that the English and Americans pronounce words differently. Basil, progress, leisure, tomato, aluminum (they spell it with an extra i too).

However, what confuses me so... Is that the English will pronounce brand names completely differently. As a marketing major, I learned that of course companies need to make adjustments in translating products into other languages. Not only to make sure the meaning makes sense in that language but also that the pronunciation works as well.

English and Americans speak the same language. So why, I wonder to myself (ok and comment with exasperation to those that bring it up) have the Brits decided to change the pronunciation of brand names that are written in English? Just cuz? As far as I know, the company that made the product gets to decide how it's pronounced. It's doesn't have to make sense. It can be a made up word. It's ok!

These brands are pronounced:
Mentos - Men-Toss
Pantene - Pan-Ten
Nike - Nyke- rhymes with Bike
Nikon - Nick-on

You would think P&G wouldn't have to adjust the pronunciation of their products in shampoo commercials in England. But they do. Because they've come up with a whole new way to pronounce it as if in a symbol of defiance or to give the product an aura of English sophistication, I'm not sure which. I'll give you that Nikon is a Japanese company and therefore the company that made the product likely doesn't care...

My colleague told me that if he ever pronounced Nike - Nikeee in the schoolyard he would have gotten beaten up. It wasn't until Michael Jordan became globally known that he and his friends even knew there was a different way to say it.

Just because Nike looks like Bike doesn't mean the company intended for them to rhyme!

Ok rant over. Until I find out a new brand name pronounced in a ridiculous way.

Promotion Assistant

The first weekend I was in Oxford last July, I had been trolling the Internet for things to do and came across an advert for a free Oxford walking tour that afternoon. Sounded good to me so I called up my friend Olena, the only person I knew in Oxford at the time as she had interned for my team in Chicago.

Olena and I arrived at the meeting place and our Scottish guide explained he was trying to get his new tour guide business, I Love Oxford Walking Tours, off the ground. This free tour was for promotion and he was hoping we would write up a review in Trip Advisor. Fair enough.

Along with us on the tour was a photographer that was going to take photos that may be used for his promotional materials and for a journalistic entry on this new start up business. We all had to agree that our photos could be used.

Well in the end the tour itself was not good. The guide rambled and it was difficult to follow his stories as he jumped around in topic and I didn't retain anything he said. Not only that but the photographer followed Olena around and was rather creepy asking for her email address to send the pics he had taken.

We did not fill out a Trip Advisor review.

A while later I realized that our photos were on the I Love Oxford website. And months later I teased Olena because a picture prominently featuring her had been blown up into a poster displayed on Broad Street.

Last weekend I was buying a coffee at Coffee Republic and looked down next to the register and saw my face. I have apparently made it onto a business card. Guess I can't tease Olena anymore. This photographer didn't get me on a "model day" and now my face is all about town associated with a tour I didn't even like!